


Together

by Karlinekind



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alpha Iwaizumi Hajime, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Angst, Confessions, Hurt/Comfort, I Made Myself Cry, M/M, Mentions of Rape, Omega Oikawa Tooru, mentions of human trafficking, this is sad and has the potential to make you cry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:48:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29683524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karlinekind/pseuds/Karlinekind
Summary: Tooru lets out the breath he was holding. “I want you to claim me,” he tells his knees in a quiet voice.Hajime closes his eyes.In a world broken by war, where hope is rare and safety an illusion, Hajime fights to protect what he has left. It's not much. But it's the only thing worth living for.They have each other. So they will keep going.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 2
Kudos: 56





	Together

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Come Morning Light](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2670308) by [SharkbaitSekki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SharkbaitSekki/pseuds/SharkbaitSekki). 



> This is loosely based on the dystopian setting in Come Morning Light by SharkbaitSekki. I read that awesomeness of a fanfic 3 years ago and it left such a big impression on me (you have no idea, really) that I'm still thinking about it today and getting inspired to write because of it. (I'm nowhere near as good, don't be fooled.)  
> My work doesn't have anything to do with the stuff happening in CML, I'm just borrowing the setting and making it ABO, because I had this idea in my head and it wanted out.

“Iwa-chan?”

“Hm?” He doesn’t look up from where he’s checking the sniper rifle he grabbed on a whim while escaping. He’s never used one before, only smaller guns, but it couldn’t be that much different.

“Can I—um. I need a favor,” Tooru says, sounding nervous. He sets down his backpack next to Hajime’s and joins him on the floor of the run-down conbini they chose as a temporary hideout.

Hajime frowns and quickly scans his friend up and down. “What is it? Are you hurt?” Tooru seemed fine earlier, but they’ve been running for the better part of the night to get as far away as possible from those body snatchers, and maybe Hajime missed something.

“No, it’s not—I’m fine. It’s…” Tooru trails off, avoiding his gaze. Hajime sets the rifle aside and turns to face the omega properly. He’s clearly not fine; there are dark circles under his eyes, his face is pale and sunken with exhaustion, and his hair has long since lost its usual shine and fluffiness. But that’s not something they can do much about. They’d need a safer world for that, a world not left broken by war, with enough food and a soft bed and the absence of constant fear and worry.

Or a time machine. A time machine would be nice.

Tooru lets out the breath he was holding. “I want you to claim me,” he tells his knees in a quiet voice.

Hajime closes his eyes. He was afraid that Tooru would suggest something like this after what happened. After what almost happened. Of course he’s not fine.

“It’s about what that guy said, isn’t it.”

“It’s not,” Tooru says. But Hajime knows when he’s lying.

_“Let him go! STOP!” Hajime screams as he is forced down on his knees._

_The guy holding Tooru manages to yank his shirt down to check his neck, despite the fight the omega puts up. “Nice, he’s unmarked. Might fetch a better prize even though he’s so tall.”_

“Tooru.” He puts his hand on Tooru’s arm, gently, so as to not startle him, and squeezes. At that, Tooru finally looks up and meets his eyes. “Something like this will not happen again. I won’t let it happen.” He tries to sound as confident and reassuring as his words are. He wants to mean it, desperately wants it to be true just by speaking the words out loud.

“You don’t know that,” Tooru whispers.

_“Don’t fucking touch him!!”_

_“Or what?” They laugh. The barrel of the gun presses harder into the back of Hajime’s head._

_“Didn’t your mommy teach you?” The guy who’s apparently their leader squats down in front of Hajime. “When something belongs to you, you write your name on it. You should have claimed what’s yours if you like that little bitch so much.”_

_Hajime spits in his face._

“I won’t let it happen. I’ll protect you. I promise.” It’s the biggest promise he’s ever made. He doesn’t know if he can keep it.

But he will die trying.

Tooru laughs weakly. His eyes are wet with tears. “I’m sorry, you know.”

“Why? There’s nothing to be sorry about,” Hajime says and lifts a hand to cup Tooru’s face. He thumbs away some of the tears that spill over. He wishes he could do more.

Tooru leans into the touch at first, but then abruptly turns away. “Yes, there is.” His voice is hard, unforgiving. “I’m a weakness.”

“You are not a weakness.”

“Yes, I am!” Tooru says, rubbing harshly over his eyes. “Don’t you see? I’m a weakness, I’ll always be a liability just because I’m an omega!”

“That’s bullshit and you know it. You’re not an object!” Hajime reaches for him again, but Tooru swats his hand away and stands up.

“Yeah? Look at what happened today! They only came after us so hard because they caught my scent! Fuck!” Frustrated, he turns away and glares at the upturned and raided shelfs littering the floor. He huffs a humorless laugh. “Actually, just forget what I said about bonding, you’d be better off without me—”

Hajime scrambles to his feet as well. “This isn’t your fault, Tooru,” he says angrily, trying to catch Tooru’s eyes again, because he needs to make this clear. “It’s not your fault for being what you are, do you hear me? It’s those guys’ fault for being scum and selling people for money.”

Hajime hates it. Hates that their world has come to this, has reduced them to fighting over the scraps they find in abandoned houses and losing every respect for other human beings. He’s angry at the people who started this war, angry at the ones who took away his family, his home, his _life_ , who didn’t think twice before bombing the whole country, destroying the future of everyone who had the misfortune to survive.

He’s angry at himself, for failing to protect the one person he has left, the one person who still matters, who makes this shitty life worthwhile.

“Look, I’m sorry, Tooru,” he says. “I’m sorry I can’t be better, I’m sorry I can’t protect you better than this—”

“No.” Tooru shakes his head. “No, Hajime, if I’m not allowed to blame myself, then you aren’t either,” he says, voice growing more determined with every word. He steps closer, putting his hands on Hajime’s shoulders and gripping tight. “It’s not your fault. You do so much for us, you’re always so strong, I wish I could do more—”

And Hajime wonders, not for the first time, how Tooru never seems to be able to see his own strength, even though it’s so obvious. He’s always the one to encourage others, to push them forward and believe in them from the bottom of his heart, but when it comes to himself, he doubts his own worth, always trying to get stronger, be better, never realizing he’s good enough as he is.

Once upon a time, those things referred to his place on a volleyball court. Now, the game they play is one of survival.

And Hajime is just glad he still has his partner with him, even now.

“But you are. You are doing so much, Tooru, can’t you see?” His voice breaks over the last words. Now he’s the one trying to hold back the tears. “I couldn’t do anything of this without you, I need you, okay? So please, please don’t—don’t talk about leaving me—”

_Because I’m not sure I could find a reason to keep going without you._

It’s funny, really. Everyone's always said Hajime is the strong one, but honestly, he’s got nothing on Tooru.

They’re already standing close, so it’s an easy thing for Tooru to pull Hajime all the way into his arms and hug him tightly. Instinctively, Hajime’s arms come up and cling to Tooru as well.

“I’m not leaving, I’m never leaving you, I didn’t mean it, I’m sorry I said that,” Tooru babbles into his shoulder, and Hajime realizes they’re both shaking, the events of the last hours finally catching up with their minds, it seems. Now that their bodies are not running on adrenaline anymore, the shock sets in. They’ve barely escaped. If they’d been just a little less lucky, those guys would have taken Tooru, sold him to God knows where, and probably killed Hajime. He clutches Tooru harder to himself.

Slowly, their breaths calm down again, and the tears dry out. Hajime doesn’t know how long they just stand there, holding each other close, trying to block out the world. He presses his eyes shut, focuses only on the solid presence of Tooru in his arms, his warmth, his familiar scent, always laced with the sour undertone of distress lately, but nevertheless evoking memories of brighter days. He ducks his face into Tooru’s neck, softly scenting him, and feels the other do the same. It’s calming. It won’t solve any of their problems, but it makes him feel like someday, maybe, everything will be normal again.

Hajime doesn’t know what to do about what Tooru asked of him. What’s the greater risk? If they ever ran into a group like those people again, being unmarked might be the better option, might keep Tooru alive. But for what? To just get sold for his body anyway? A bite mark might save him from that fate, but then they might just shoot him on the spot. Or rape him first and then shoot him. Omegas weren’t safe, even at the refugee camp they had left for precisely that reason. Not that anyone was really safe anywhere, anyway.

 _God, what am I even thinking about?_ Half a year ago, claiming bites were simply a sign of love and devotion to him. Now, his best friend has asked him to claim him because he’s scared for his life, and Hajime is actively considering it in terms of usefulness. The fact that their actual feelings for each other are secondary to all of it is breaking his heart. _This is so fucked up. So fucked up._

He’s thought about it, before. Before the world as they knew it went to shit. He thought about what it would be like to be with Tooru, to date him and do all those stupid couple things like ride Ferris wheels together or secretly hold hands underneath the table when they were out with their friends because Tooru would love it and Hajime would grumble about it but indulge him anyway because he can never say no to Tooru. How Hanamaki and Matsukawa would tease them and say “took you long enough” and “finally”, but would be happy for them, nonetheless.

He thought about living together with Tooru for university, of facing each other on the court as opponents for the first time in their lives, but still coming home to each other at the end of the day, bickering about whose team was better and who was supposed to do the dishes, and then falling into bed together.

He thought about bonding with Tooru, probably way sooner than is socially acceptable, because let’s face it, they’ve known each other for so long, they know what they’d be getting into. He thought about claiming Tooru and being claimed in return, because they loved each other and wanted to spend the rest of their lives together.

All of that had been a fantasy, of course, because Hajime never actually worked up the courage to ask Tooru out properly. He _was_ pretty sure that Tooru liked him back, but still. He thought it could wait for after Spring High. He thought he had time.

Turns out that time is a luxury they can’t afford to have anymore.

His hold on Tooru has loosened a bit, but he still keeps his arms around him, stroking light circles onto his back. Tooru doesn’t pull away either, so Hajime speaks up again.

“A bite mark doesn’t necessarily protect you from other alphas. Someone else can still claim you.”

“I know,” Tooru mumbles into his jacket.

“And even if having a mark somehow makes you less… _valuable_ to them,” Hajime hates thinking about it like that, “then what’s keeping them from just shooting you? Wouldn’t it be safer, then, if you were unmarked?”

He doesn’t know what’s the right choice. He wishes someone would tell him how to keep Tooru safe.

“I know,” Tooru says again. He pulls away from their embrace, meeting Hajime’s gaze. There’s this spark in his eyes, somewhere beneath all the sadness and hopelessness, that somehow still hasn’t died out yet. “But at least I’ll have the memory. No matter what happens, and no matter how long we manage to survive this, at least for that time I belonged to the one I love.”

 _It’s so unfair,_ Hajime thinks.

He can’t tear his eyes away from Tooru. Beautiful, determined, stubborn Tooru, never giving up, even if the world literally ends around him. He loves him so much.

He deserves better. He deserves everything. It’s truly so _unfair_.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen from now on, but I know one thing.” Tooru’s voice is raw with emotion. “I’d rather die with your mark on me than let myself be claimed by anyone else.”

Only six months ago, Hajime had been stressing over how to tell Tooru how he feels. Had wondered about when and where and how he should phrase it best. Had ultimately put it off time and time again.

Now, it’s easy.

“I love you, Tooru,” he whispers, and the tiny smile he is rewarded with might not be as radiant as he has always imagined, but it is true and honest and Tooru.

And he kisses him. Because he doesn’t have any time left. Because Tooru is right, and he wants the memory, too.

Tooru sighs into the kiss, clinging to him again. He doesn’t break the kiss, even when it starts tasting salty from the tears rolling down Hajime’s cheeks, and when Hajime pulls back, Tooru doesn’t go far, simply resting his forehead against Hajime’s.

“I wanted you to have better than this,” Hajime tells him, desperately, voice shaking. “I wanted to give you so much more—”

“It’s alright.” Tooru gently cups his face and wipes at the tears. Hajime wonders when he will finally run out of them. “I never wanted more, anyway. Just you.”

“I love you,” Hajime says. “I’m sorry.” Sorry for the life they lost. For the people they loved and would never see again. For all the missed opportunities and the dreams that would never come true.

“It’s alright,” Tooru says, because he’s strong. “As long as we’re together.”

And Hajime kisses him again, because it’s the only thing he can do.

They say kissing the person you love can make the world stop spinning. Stop the flow of time.

It doesn’t.

Outside, the sun is rising, painting the bombed and broken town in warm and golden colors. It’s going to be a beautiful day.

_________________

_But if the earth ends in fire  
_ _And the seas are frozen in time  
_ _There'll be just one survivor_  
_The memory that I was yours  
_ _And you were mine_

**Author's Note:**

> Lyrics from [Immortal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C7DfadbnTs&list=RD0C7DfadbnTs&start_radio=1) by Marina and the Diamonds.
> 
> I'm usually not the type of writer who listens to music as inspiration, and I didn't when I first thought about this story and started writing it. But when I was almost done with it, I stumbled over this song by chance, and I cannot begin to tell you how _floored_ I was because it fit so well. The lyrics were _literally_ what I had already written out. It was insane.  
> I finished the story (without the song, I can't concentrate while listening to music), and when I was done, I listened to it again. And again. And I just sat there and cried.


End file.
